


Hit My Head

by JimRoot666



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: And im more than willing to give it to him, Connor is just a worried boy, Gavin Reed Needs a Hug, Gavin has horses, Gavin ls a horse dad confirmed, Gen, He falls off, He is hurting, Horses, I Tried, idk - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-18
Updated: 2019-01-18
Packaged: 2019-10-12 09:04:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,232
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17464547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JimRoot666/pseuds/JimRoot666
Summary: Gavin falls off his horse.Gavin is  s c a r e d.





	Hit My Head

**Author's Note:**

> Oops im projecting

Gavin entered the stable, the smell of fresh hay and.. well, horse shit, hitting him. Sultan, his beloved horse let out a low whinny and perked his ears. 

"I know boy, I'm going to ride Tanner and then I'll give you some mash. That sounds good?"

Sultan took a step towards him and gave him a kiss - the first thing Gavin taught the gentle gelding.  
His other horse, Tanner was no where in sight. Gavin stroked Sultan's soft brown nose one last time and then went into the paddock to look for a certain black horse.

The estate was built to give the horses as much freedom as possible. Straight from his backdoor was the garage, where he kept hay, straw, tack, and other practical things. The stall was next to it, big enough to contain 3 horses in total. There was no door, so his boys could enter and exit whenever they felt like it. Connected to the entrance/ exit of the stable was the paddock. A part was shaded by the roof of the stall, but the other part was in the shining sun. This way, his horses could always choose.

He found Tanner at the back of the paddock, lazily laying down in the sun.

"You takin' a beauty sleep boy? Get your lazy ass up, we're going for a ride!" Gavin shouted towards the black horse. His words held no malice, not meant in the same way as he used to insult his coworkers. 

Tanner picked up his head, and turned to look at him, sighed deeply.  
"I know. I'm gonna get your halter and we'll tack you up." 

It had been a while since he had ridden Tanner. Sultan doesn't get ridden anymore because of his age. He's getting close to the 30s. Gavin got Sultan for a low price, buying him from someone who was planning to bring him to the slaughterhouse. Sultan had been in horrible shape: underfed, abused, left in a tiny stall with no water when Gavin visited him.  
It took a lot of patience, hard work, and especially money, but Sultan was now the Sultan he deserved to be. He was happy, well-fed, healthy and in good shape.

Tanner, he bought later. He noticed how his old boy was alone, and since he had always ridden horses as a kid, and even in his adulthood - before he became a detective and slammed himself head first into work. He decided to pick it up again, met the owners of Tanner through an old barn friend and met the horse of his life. 

They did a lot of stuff together. Tanner was originally a dressage horse, but retired now. He too neared the age of 20, which his owners found too old.  
Tanner was a great jumper as well, and enjoyed rides outside. Gavin enjoyed riding bareback as well, though trying to not damage the horse's back too much. 

Gavin had gotten injured on the job, shot and beaten up by a perp. He'd spent a lot of time in the hospital, worried sick about his horses instead of himself.  
Luckily, he had one true friend. Tina came and visit him every day, caring for his horses and telling him how good boys they were.  
Gavin had missed them terribly, giving her notes on how much to feed them, how long they were allowed to graze, etc.

This was the first time in a month that he was gonna hop on Tanner again. He wasn't going to lie, he was a bit nervous. Tanner was good, yes, but could get a little hot-headed sometimes. Gavin had fallen off a few times before.

He wasn't afraid of falling.  
He was afraid of falling off and hurting himself so badly that he could never ride again. 

It wouldn't be the end of the world. He could still lunge Tanner, take him out to walk, ensure he gets enough movement.

But it would break his heart. Definitely.

So, he willed his hands to stop shaking, Tanner would notice his fear and act on it.

Gavin took Tanner's blue halter, along with the brushes he bought for him - also blue.  
He had bought separate brushes for his horses, just in case one might get sick, then it wouldn't be transmitted to the other as easily. Sultan had purple.

He took both items in one hand, then picked up the bridle with his other. Trying not to drop anything, he put his hand under the saddle and lifted it.

Looking like a complete, overloaded idiot, he exited the garage.  
Tanner had gotten up, and was standing next to Sultan, looking at their owner over the fence.

He set all the things down except the halter, going inside the paddock and putting the halter on the black horse. Tanner looked excited, being able to go on a ride again. 

He led the horse towards his tack-up place, tying him and picked up a brush, started brushing. Tanner wasn't really dirty, just some dried up sand on his side from where he was laying down earlier.

Gavin also picked the hooves, and brushed the mane. He lifted the blue saddle pad and let it rest upon Tanner's back. On top of that he laid a gelpad, not needed but he prefered to use it anyway.  
He then picked up the light-weight saddle and put it on top of both items.

Lastly, he picked up the bitless bridle, undoing the halter and putting the bridle on instead. After everything was put on and ready, he walked beside his trusty steed as he led him towards a small outdoor arena.  
No, Gavin wasn't rich. He just used every dollar to invest in his horses, instead of himself. He lived in a small-sized house, without a television, and outdated phone, etc. But at least his horses lived the life.

Once arrived there, he tightened the synch just a little bit more, before putting his foot in the stirrup and getting on. 

His knees protested, but he ignored the pain and pushed with his heels to let Tanner go in a walk.  
They started slowly, walking figures and loosening up muscles.

Then, Gavin ushered Tanner into a trot. He had forgotten how much he enjoyed riding. It made him forget all his problems and enabled him to focus on the horse and himself.

After riding quite some exercises, they were about 30 minutes in. A small jump was left standing from his previous ride, and Gavin steered Tanner towards it.  
Tanner happily hopped over it, clearing it with ease. Gavin laughed. 

Deciding he was ready, Gavin nudged Tanner into a canter. That's when his luck turned. 

Tanner, overexcited, bucked from sheer energy. Gavin was a good rider, yes, but Tanner was a great bucker. 

Gavin held on as much as he could, feeling his body fall forward and the ground coming closer.  
He also saw the stone fence.. too late.

\-- 

Gavin came by, his head pounding and vision blurred. He felt a warm, sticky liquid dripping down into his neck, and also along his arm.  
'Fuck', he muttered. 'Shit.'

He looked around him, Tanner was luckily still beside him, looking a bit guilty. Or maybe that's just his imagination. The reins were thrown over the horse's head during the fall and were now dragging on the ground. The saddle was slightly to the left from where Gavin fell off.

"I'm okay", he said out loud, more to himself than to Tanner. "I'm okay." 

Gavin sat upright, scratching the back of his head and wincing when his hand made contact with blood. From where he was sitting he couldn't see any injuries on Tanner, but he checked the horse's legs just to be sure anyway.

"Oh fuck.. let's get outta here." Way too soon he grabbed Tanner's reins and hoisted himself upright, on shaking legs.  
The world was turning and unsteady but he pushed forward anyway, Tanner following him like a good boy.

What felt like a marathon, was actually a few meters, and finally he reached the fence again. He continued leading the horse towards the tack-up place, and started untacking Tanner.

Normally he took his time, but he was in pain.  
In five minutes he was done untacking, and released Tanner back into the paddock to bond further with Sultan. He quickly gave the horses some hay, complaining about the pain.

Gavin then went back inside his house, tending to his wounds and getting some much needed rest.

\--

Gavin came stumbling into the precinct next morning, using walls and chairs to navigate. His head was pounding, his eyesight restricted. The world felt slowed down, yet he couldn't keep up.  
With much effort he was able to find his desk and sat down, not ready to work just yet.

Actually, it was stupid of him to go to work. Everything in him told him to just skip today. But he greatly needed the money. Sultan destroyed his old blanket, and a delivery of hay was on its way.

"Good morning Dete-- But, Detective Reed, what happened to you?" 

Fuck. If there was one thing he absolutely didn't want to deal with today, it was Connor. His voice alone was enough to make him want to punch holes in the wall. If his body allowed him to, anyway.

"Jus' life, t'ncan." Gavin got scared of his own voice. His speech was slurred and slow. Almost the opposite of his normal anger outbursts.

He heard a gasp, and tried to look over who it was, only to be absolutely blinded by the lights. It almost physically hurt.

"Gav, what the hell happened?" 

Oh.. Tina.

"Not'ng."

"Something absolutely did happen, don't bullshit me."

Gavin sighed. He looked up - with a lot of effort - into the worried faces of Tina and Connor. Hank was also looking curiously at him from his desk.

"Fell off m' hors'". Tina nodded and came closer to him, crouching beside him and gently taking his head in her hands.

"You are an absolute idiot. Did you hurt yourself?"

Gavin thought for a moment. He abso-fucking-lutely did hurt himself, but he didn't want to seem weak in front of the tincan. In the end he settled for a "yeah". 

"Oh, Gavin. Did you go to the hospital? Get yourself checked out?" 

"According to my scans, Detective, you are in great pain and are showing signs of a concussion." Connor spoke up, the worried gaze not having left his eyes.

"Fuck o-"

"A concussion? Gavin! We need to get you checked immediately!" 

Gavin sighed, going to the hospital wasn't on his to-do list today.

"Nooo-"

"Yes! Come, I'll get my jacket and drive us there. Dear Connor, could you tell Fowler what has happened?"

"Of course, Officer Chen."

"Come on, Gavin, let's go!" 

\-- 

 

And that's how Gavin ended up in the hospital, with Tina by his side, talking his ears off about how he had to take better care of himself.  
Connor had stopped by too, with a mumbling Hank by his side, but they left soon after because they had a lot of work to do. Connor had also taken up some paperwork that Gavin still had to do.

"So which one was it?" Tina asked after a moment of silence.

"Huh?"

"Which horse threw you off?" 

"T'was Tanner. Didn't do it on purpose. He got over'xcited." Gavin couldn't see her face in the dark room, but knowing her, she was probably innerly scolding him for the 'it's not the horse's fault' thing. 

"Go sleep a bit Gavin, you need it. I'll be back tomorrow as soon as possible after work. Connor might stop by again as well." She gave him a light kiss on his temple and they both said goodbye. 

She softly closed the door behind her and left Gavin all alone with his thoughts.

\-- 

Tanner was looked at him curiously, all tacked up and ready. They were in the arena again, the first time since the accident. 

Gavin felt.. Gavin felt anxious. He was scared. He was scared of falling off again. He..

He wasn't ready.

Not yet.

Maybe one day he will be.

But not yet.

"I'm sorry Tanner. I can't do it." 

Tears were streaming down his face as he weakly started sobbing. He got his foot out of the stirrup and buried his face in the horse's mane. The warmth radiating off the animal was comforting, but that was all there was to it.

Tanner wasn't human, Tanner didn't understand. He couldn't calm him down and reassure him. All Tanner could do was look at him with those beautiful horse eyes and make him feel even more guilty.

"I'm sorry Tanner. Maybe next time." Gavin distanced himself again from his horse and took the reins, leading the animal towards the tack-up place, and started taking the saddle and bridle off.

He did brush Tanner long and good, as a sort of reward for being so patient with his scared ass.

He led the horse back into the paddock and took his head in his hands, placing a big kiss on the horse's soft nose, and gently stroking the mane. 

"I love you Tanner, don't you ever forget that. I'm just not ready yet."

With that, Gavin turned around and walked back inside his house, started crying again on the way.

He's not ready yet.

But will he ever be?

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed! Comments and Kudo's are greatly appreciated.
> 
> If you know Think Like a Horse/ Rick Gore, hit me up!


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